Free Republic

Hamas's October 7 killing spree in southern Israel was "horrific" and unjustifiable, but what is "also true is that the occupation and what's happening to Palestinians is unbearable," former President Barack Obama said in comments published Saturday.The remarks come after Obama earlier warned that an Israeli ground operation in Gaza could "backfire," arguing that while Israel had the right to defend itself, any civilian death would increase support for extremism and harm the country's long-term security.In his latest intervention, the former president argued for all sides of the debate over Israel and Palestine to acknowledge the "complexity" of the conflict...

Tighe Barry, left, and Medea Benjamin of Code Pink protest in Washington, D.C. On the heels of a Big Government article asking whether the Muslim Brotherhood and other anti-Mubarak organizations in Egypt have been learning their tactics from Obama allies Bill Ayers and Code Pink (as a result of connections made in Egypt one year ago) comes news that Code Pink is in Cairo and is involved in the protests. An audio file of a phone call by leftist activist David Swanson that day to Code Pink agitator Tighe Barry in Cairo was posted late Friday. Barry, in Egypt...

Two Israeli soldiers were killed in a gun battle with Gaza militants in some of the fiercest fighting in the territory since Israel's military offensive there more than a year ago. The deaths were the first for the Israeli military in Gaza since January 2009. Four militants died in the clashes and in another exchange of fire nearby. Gaza's Islamic Hamas rulers announced that their gunmen were involved — marking a shift from the group's tendency over the past year to avoid confrontation with Israeli forces. The outbreak of violence in Gaza, which subsided by early evening, highlighted the region's...

NEW YORK -- Of the Democratic presidential candidates, would Republican John McCain rather take on Barack Obama or Hillary Rodham Clinton? "You know, Ron Paul is still in the race," McCain joked Wednesday during a taping of Comedy Central's "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart." McCain deadpanned about the marathon race between the Democrats: "I hate to watch it. It's terrible. My heart goes out to them." During the taping, McCain pretended to walk off the set when Stewart pressed him on whether President Bush is more of a liability for him than the Rev. Jeremiah Wright is for Obama....